I decided to share some of the things the documentary pointed out:
-The film said that, according to a survey conducted by the University of Maryland and reported by the Seattle Times, Fox led among cable news channels in giving viewers "misperceptions of the War in Iraq"
-Over a span of a few months, analysts watched Fox and concluded that Republicans were used a whopping five times more than Democrats (over eighty percent)
-When that didn't work, the documentary showed how Fox anchors would cut the person's mic or do something else to get them to "shut up."
-When that didn't work, the documentary showed how Fox anchors would cut the person's mic or do something else to get them to "shut up."
-The analysts also concluded that Fox News had a way of generating fear with some of its stories
The channel focused on the "happier side" of Iraq during the war, making it look like it was worth going to war with them because the U.S. was "improving" conditions there
-Glick's father was killed during 9/11 but he still disapproved of the war
-O'Reilly used scare tactics and intimidation because he was in disagreement over Glick's position
-According to the film, O'Reilly painted Glick as a "conspirator" and later lied about and exaggerated Glick's comments in a follow up show
-According to the documentary, O'Reilly threatened and cursed at Glick off camera after the argument on-air
Carl Cameron and George W. Bush
-Carl Cameron, Fox News commentator, had an interview with then Pres. Bush
-According to the documentary, Cameron's wife actually worked on the Bush campaign
-The film reported that no other news station allowed a "conflict of interests" situation to take place
John Ellis and the 2000 Bush Election
-Ellis was a freelance political advisor (and Bush's first cousin) contracted by Fox News
-He declared Bush the winner against Gore before the recount took place on the news channel
-Prompted other news stations to do the same which was unfair to do before official count came in
-According to analysts in the film, Democrats who did appear were often nobodies who were deemed "weak" and "easy to defeat"
This is just a sample of the many things the documentary noted about Fox News but there were many more. According to the Wikipedia article I found, Fox fired back at the creators of the film, saying they infringed upon copyright laws by using some of their broadcast material without permission. If you don't believe me or want to refute what I've just said, check out the video below beforehand. This is a part of the same documentary (using some of their live broadcast footage) which features how Fox News attacked John Kerry during the 2004 Presidential Campaign (courtesy of Outfoxed.org).
Although this documentary was made six years ago, this problem still exists at Fox News. Everytime I'm flipping through and watch the station for a few minutes, they almost always have some kind of negative story surrounding Democrats and a more poistive one surrounding Republicans. If a debate is going on during a show, I quickly recognize which side the anchor/host is on because they will always interrupt and intimidate the opposing side (especially with politics). This is horrible journalism, in my opinion, and we shouldn't have it freely propogating through our society. Still not convinced? You can watch the entire documentary here and decide for yourself.
Works Cited
Greenwald, R., Busby, L., Gilliam, J., McArdle, K., & Smith, D. (Producers), & Greenwald, R. (Director). (2006). Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism [Motion picture]. USA via: Google Videos
Outfoxed. (2011, October 9). Retrieved November 16, 2011, from Wikipedia.org
Image courtesy of Fox News Channel
Works Cited
Greenwald, R., Busby, L., Gilliam, J., McArdle, K., & Smith, D. (Producers), & Greenwald, R. (Director). (2006). Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch's War on Journalism [Motion picture]. USA via: Google Videos
Outfoxed. (2011, October 9). Retrieved November 16, 2011, from Wikipedia.org
Image courtesy of Fox News Channel
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